The lost Round City of Baghdad, which was a center of Abbassid Caliphate and de-facto of Islamic world from 766 until its complete destruction by the Mongols under Hulagu Khan in 1258
The Round City of Baghdad was centrally planned as a residence of Abbasid Caliphs and its core was built in 762-766, in just 4 years. Pre-planned structures, both grand palaces and mosques as well as various commercial and residential buildings were designed by the best architects and craftsmen of Islamic world at a time. It took a shape of a circle with a radius of about 1 km. Great Palace of the Golden Gate as well as Grand Mosque of al-Mansur stood in its center, surrounded by the massive park and some selected institutional buildings. Two rings of the inner walls delineated various dense commercial-residential quarters. The city was also a hub for knowledge, and had a large number of schools (madrasas) and libraries, including the great House of Wisdom, probably the largest Medieval library in Islamic World. The birth of the city coincided with Islamic Golden Age, and destruction of Baghdad by the Mongols under Hulagu Khan in 1258 marked the dusk and decline. It is said that when Mongols were sacking the city, river of Tigris ran black from the ink from the countless manuscripts thrown into the water, many of which were the rarest and maybe the only surviving copies of some translated Greek and Roman texts.
The problem with recreations of lost cities is they never show the constant construction work that never ends.
maybosssays
I’m from Baghdad and can confirm that Hulagu was an asshole
Zozorrrsays
Interesting timing. Just a few decades earlier, around 1200, the Muslim conqueror Kahlji had ransacked and burned Nandala in India. The oldest university in the world. The library was destroyed there too.
snoozeflusays
Where was it physically located? What is built there now?
triscuitsrulesays
Looks like Ba Sing Se
ProfessorZhirinovskysays
This was one of the greatest historic tragedies that ever struck humanity.
Setting aside the terrible loss of life, this part/version of Baghdad was arguably one of the world’s greatest repositories of knowledge, both in terms of the literature it preserved, but also in the scholars who lived there, drawn from all over the known world.
Before this Baghdad was destroyed, Islam was in a golden age, leaders of the world in science and progress. I think it could be argued it never recovered from this disaster.
Strydwolf says
The Round City of Baghdad was centrally planned as a residence of Abbasid Caliphs and its core was built in 762-766, in just 4 years. Pre-planned structures, both grand palaces and mosques as well as various commercial and residential buildings were designed by the best architects and craftsmen of Islamic world at a time. It took a shape of a circle with a radius of about 1 km. Great Palace of the Golden Gate as well as Grand Mosque of al-Mansur stood in its center, surrounded by the massive park and some selected institutional buildings. Two rings of the inner walls delineated various dense commercial-residential quarters. The city was also a hub for knowledge, and had a large number of schools (madrasas) and libraries, including the great House of Wisdom, probably the largest Medieval library in Islamic World. The birth of the city coincided with Islamic Golden Age, and destruction of Baghdad by the Mongols under Hulagu Khan in 1258 marked the dusk and decline. It is said that when Mongols were sacking the city, river of Tigris ran black from the ink from the countless manuscripts thrown into the water, many of which were the rarest and maybe the only surviving copies of some translated Greek and Roman texts.
Another visualization of the city
Plan view and perspective
algebramclain says
Fascinating.
Chambellan says
What’s the historical basis for this rendering?
LegoPaco says
The problem with recreations of lost cities is they never show the constant construction work that never ends.
mayboss says
I’m from Baghdad and can confirm that Hulagu was an asshole
Zozorrr says
Interesting timing. Just a few decades earlier, around 1200, the Muslim conqueror Kahlji had ransacked and burned Nandala in India. The oldest university in the world. The library was destroyed there too.
snoozeflu says
Where was it physically located? What is built there now?
triscuitsrule says
Looks like Ba Sing Se
ProfessorZhirinovsky says
This was one of the greatest historic tragedies that ever struck humanity.
Setting aside the terrible loss of life, this part/version of Baghdad was arguably one of the world’s greatest repositories of knowledge, both in terms of the literature it preserved, but also in the scholars who lived there, drawn from all over the known world.
Before this Baghdad was destroyed, Islam was in a golden age, leaders of the world in science and progress. I think it could be argued it never recovered from this disaster.